Shanu, I think you hit the nail on the head! Between TV shopping shows that tout "Regular retail" and "Our Price," department stores' frequent "50% off" sales (50% off what?), and jewelry stores that blatantly advertise "any piece you buy is GUARANTEED to appraise for twice what you paid for it," no wonder consumers think they're getting ripped off every time they buy a piece of jewelry!! The reason nobody tries to bargain on a Mercedes-Benz or a pair of Jimmy Choo shoes is because they know (or assume) in advance that the answer is going to be "no." I think it's probably easier to combat the "One Carat Tennis Bracelet--only $99" ads than the screaming discounts, because people can relate to the concept of a Hyundai vs. a Benz. Both are cars, and both will get you from point A to point B, but the experience is vastly different. I think people can translate that to a cheap tennis bracelet vs. an expensive one when the jeweler explains it properly. (It helps to buy a few to have on hand to use as illustration, too...consider it part of the operations budget!) So yes, I think jewelers have shot themselves in the foot. I blogged about this in my "backhanded Compliment" on JCK Voices.

Shanu, you have started a very interesting debate here. I run a specialist bespoke jewellery company in London and its no different here. We pride ourselves on the quality of our products and the personalised aspect of our service and yet clients still think they can get all of this at an off-the-peg price. We struggle to make clients appreciate the difference between readymade and bespoke (custom made), or hand fabricated as opposed to cast. Most jewellers will sell at any price as long as they make some profit however small. I've seen it myself in Hatton Garden, we've had clients come to us for a consultation where we have prepared sketches and sourced exceptionally high quality cut stones, for the client to turn around a few days later and say he 'was offered the same stone (sic) for a far cheaper price, including the ring'... of course I try to explain that the diamond is inferior and the ring mass-produced to no avail usually... its like comparing a mini with a mercedes, they both have 4 wheels and 2 doors but one oozes quality and was built to last... People appear less discerning these days, as long as they are told its 'quality' and the price is right, they are happy to part with their cash. Unfortunately this ignorance will eventually kill off the real quality manufacturers and all that will be left is mass-produced rubbish.

I couldn't agree more...especially with the last comment that "Unfortunately this ignorance will eventually kill off the real quality manufacturers and all that will be left is mass-produced rubbish." I am a jewelry designer and all of my jewelry is hand-made with very high quality in mind. Now is one of the most difficut times in this market, and its very hard to make ends meet. My work comes with a higher price tag than mass-produced pieces. I have retailers tell me again and again, "I can't get that kind of price for this...I know its better quality but my customer doesn't." I understand that the consumer is not as educated as the retailer about quality and production, but since the retailer is the one with face-to-face contact with the consumer, I feel its part of their responsibility to do this educating. I do it whenever I can at trunk shows and the like. The consumer will never know if we don't tell them. And think of all those people buying cheap mass-produced rubbish that won't last and then bring it in to be fixed (and it can't be...will bubble or crack or is more expensive to fix than the whole thing cost to buy). Its like supply and demand. I see wholesalers dumping merchandise at various trade shows with cash and carry, and they're dumping it for less than cost. Retailers are buying it up. This ultimately affects everyone else. I was selling a well-made sterling silver ring with a nice quality citrine for around $45 wholesale and some lady came up to me and asked why it was so expensive at 45 cents a gram. I said it was $45 and she dropped it on my case and walked away in disgust explaining she just bought a pair of white gold and diamond earrings for $14. Seriously...how can any of us make livings if our peers are dumping product into the market like that? There is a way to overcome all this...educating the consumer...just as Mercedes and others have done...but we have to do it TOGETHER.

I think this is an unfortunate side effect of the high cost of low prices promoted by companies like BlueNile and Wal-Mart. Today's consumers are inundated with merchandise promoted by price point, not value. For commodity items like pickles and T-shirts which are consumable or limited life expectancy, the consumer gets what they pay for. For durable goods like cars and handcrafted jewelry, the seller has to question the consumer's expectations. "Are you looking for low price or for good quality?" The idea of consumer bargaining may be new to the retailer, but it is accepted behavior in many societies and certainly practiced by the retailer making purchases from their suppliers.

There is a general attitude among the vast populace that retail jewellers make huge margins on everything they sell, so many prospective purchasers will "grind" the retailer in order to gain a sense of victory over this type of heinous greed. Most people have so little real knowledge of the inside workings of the trade, and many retailers couldn't convincingly explain why a particular product costs so much. It just does, get over it. Malls are full of jewellery stores.Visit five jewellery stores and you'll see the same stuff. It's all a commodity, sold by the gram, minimal labour and post-industrial diamonds, and this is what people see...the very same people who may set foot in your store. Maybe they won't set foot in your store, as you don't quite appear to be giving it away yet, no big fluorescent discount signage. They will wait until your receivers hold a sale on your behalf. The public is cynical, and who can blame them? What have we done collectively to help them appreciate jewellery as an artform?

If you look at the banner at the top of this page, you may see an advert for Bidz LIVE JEWELRY AUCTIONS! Discounts up to 95%. Need I say anymore?

I rarely tell my customers that I'm a Jeweler. I tell them that I am a Goldsmith. That changes how they listen to me. I rarely if ever have to deal with a "haggler". At one time a Jeweler actually jewelled something. Today jewelry retailers call themselves jewelers. Sometimes they'll have a bench jeweler in the back and sometimes not. We deal with public perception of who we are and what we do. I accurately describe who I am and that gives my customer a confidence based in reality of what they're getting from me. They are paying for my years of knowledge and my expertise in craftsmanship and design. Jewelry retailers do not have that background paradigm from which to project themselves from. They are relying upon the price value to make their sale. Without some linguistic determination factor such as 3rd world factory shiney crap, machine-made metal items, sweat-shop bling, or some other distinguishing appellation, the big retailers get to call their items jewelry and sell it on any premise they like and drive the value into the ground until there are no independent jewelers left. I remember back in the 70's there being a conversation about what we could call our jewelry whether it was hand-crafted or hand-wrought. I don't use either term today because of the beaded junk craze uses hand-crafted and hand-wrought makes the consumer tilt their head like a dog listening to humans speak eliciting images of hammers blasting away, smashing that poor metal into shape. If I were strictly a retailer, I would seek some way to get truth in advertising implemented. I don't worry about Wally's World, my niche doesn't buy there.

Buy wow gold, Welcome to wow power leveling website! we offer wow powerleveling